Washington– President Donald Trump’s decision Convert the country’s most advanced aircraft carrier To South America in his campaign against drug cartels, he is towing the ship from the Mediterranean Sea at the same time A fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas Threatened by new strikes in Gaza.
The United States is set to be in a somewhat unusual position, with only one aircraft carrier deployed, and none in the waters off both Europe and the Middle East. The change is particularly stark yet The United States joined the Israeli strikes on Iran In June I participated In some of the most intense combat operations Since World War II against the Houthi rebels in Yemen in the Red Sea.
Aircraft carriers, with their thousands of sailors and dozens of warplanes, have long been recognized as one of the ultimate signifiers of American military power and the country’s foreign policy priorities. There have been five Deployment of aircraft carriers in the Middle East Since the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, incl Two tankers in the area at multiple points This year and the last.
New orders for the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford highlights the Trump administration’s increasing focus on the Western Hemisphere and represents a significant escalation in firepower as the US military advances Intensifies deadly strikes on alleged drug boats. With more warships, aircraft and troops already in the region, Trump himself has hinted at what could happen next.
Speaking from another aircraft carrier, the USS George Washington, in her home port in Japan, Trump noted US attacks at sea, and reiterated that “we will now stop the arrival of drugs by land.”
Mark Cancian, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a retired Marine Corps colonel, wondered how long Ford would be able to stay in South America, when only three of the 11 US aircraft carriers are usually at sea.
“It’s a powerful and rare resource, and there’s going to be a lot of pressure to do something or send it somewhere else,” Cancian said. “You can imagine peace negotiations in the eastern Mediterranean collapsing or something happening with Iran.”
The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz was also deployed, but is on its way home from the South China Sea to the West Coast before being decommissioned. He – she Recently lost two planes – A fighter plane and a helicopter – in two separate incidents under investigation. A third aircraft carrier, the USS Theodore Roosevelt, has not been deployed but is conducting maneuvers off the coast of San Diego.
The shift is occurring as violence has flared up again in Gaza despite a ceasefire that Trump helped broker after two years of war. Israeli army They launched a barrage of attacks on Tuesday as tensions escalated with Hamas after two weeks of a fragile ceasefire.
Meanwhile, the US military’s increased presence near Venezuela and its 13 deadly strikes on alleged drug boats have raised fears that Trump… Could try to overthrow tyrannical President Nicolas Madurowhich is facing Drug-related terrorism charges in the United States
In response to questions about this speculation, Foreign Minister Marco Rubio said: Saturday insisted The United States is participating in the anti-drug operation. He again accused the Maduro government of participating in drug shipments.
“This is a very serious problem for the hemisphere, and very destabilizing,” Rubio said. “This needs to be addressed.”
Maduro he said in a recent national broadcast The Trump administration is waging a war against him.
“They are creating an extravagant, vulgar, criminal and completely false narrative,” Maduro added. “Venezuela is a country that does not produce cocaine leaves.”
Experts say that US forces in the region are not large enough to launch an invasion. But they may help oust Maduro, perhaps plunging the country into chaos.
“There is a really high potential for violence and instability,” says Jeff Ramsey, an expert on US policy toward Venezuela and a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. He said that if Maduro loses power, Venezuela could “turn into a Libya-style collapse that could last for years.”
The Ford strike group, which includes five destroyers, will add to an unusually large US military buildup in the waters off Venezuela. The Navy already has eight warships in the region – Three destroyersThree amphibious assault ships, a cruiser and a smaller littoral combat ship designed for coastal waters. It was not clear whether the five destroyers in the Ford strike group would make the trip.
A US Navy submarine also operates in the wider South American region and is capable of launching cruise missiles. The US Army also fielded a squadron of F-35B Lightning II fighter jets To the airstrip in Puerto Rico Recently, two supersonic heavy bombers flew to the coast of Venezuela.
The administration says the military killed at least 57 people in attacks against ships accused of transporting drugs. Trump did Declaring drug gangs illegal combatants Because of the flow of drugs into the country, he said that the United States was in an “armed conflict” with them, relying on the same legal authority that the Bush administration used after September 11.
Lawmakers from both political parties expressed concerns about Trump’s lack of congressional approval and unwillingness to provide details about the attacks. Others, like Trump ally Senator Lindsey Graham, believe the president has all the power he needs.
The South Carolina Republican said Sunday on CBS’ “Face the Nation” that ground strikes in Venezuela are a “real possibility.”
“We will not sit on the sidelines and watch boats full of drugs come into our country,” Graham said. “We’ll blow them up and kill the people who want to poison America, and we’ll now expand our operations, I believe, to include Earth.”